This invention relates generally to information storage systems and more particularly to systems for vehicle information storage to improve reliability and serviceability of the vehicle in the absense of hard malfunctions or faults in the vehicle during poor vehicle performance.
Today's vehicle condition monitoring systems are typical features in most vehicles. They routinely monitor the sensors in the vehicle for malfunctions and store the sensor data in memory to aid service technicians or mechanics in pinpointing malfunctions in the electronics or the engine. Unnecessary replacement of parts after incorrect diagnosis by mechanics reflect the shortcomings in the condition monitoring systems currently available. These shortcomings could be eliminated if more sensor data was stored in memory in order to assist the mechanics in identifying problems before they occur.
A typical condition monitoring system comprises a central processing unit, a central lamp failure unit, and a display unit. The central processing unit is usually microprocesor-based and all sensor data from around the vehicle is fed back to this unit via parallel inputs. The microprocessor decodes all the input states to determine valid and non-valid inputs together with sensor failure data and it generates output signals for the display module. The central processing unit also contains memory storage devices to store data on vehicle past history performance. With this current architecture, to increase the amount of vehicle sensor data stored in memory would require faster microprocessors, reduced data processing, and improved microprocessor addressing schemes.